“The old Skylab suit.”
Peter practically spit out his coffee hearing he was going to be wearing a suit made for the 1973 mission. “Are you serious?”
“Yep. In fact as we speak one is being packed on the military plane that will fly to Kazakhstan, hopefully with you on board.”
Peter joked, “What museum did they find that at?” He set his coffee down. “Will it work?”
“I’ve been told they rushed to locate one your size and quickly had it tested. After replacing some parts, it should do the job.”
Peter was familiar with the Skylab suit. As he thought about it, using that suit made sense. The Skylab spacesuits were designed for both flight and spacewalks. Though the suit’s main source of oxygen during extravehicular activities, or EVA’s, was supplied by an umbilical cord attached to the Skylab station, they also had a small emergency oxygen pack strapped to the leg. These small packs differed from the Apollo suits that had large backpacks. Peter couldn’t sit in Galileo with the large Apollo backpack attached, and couldn’t hook up one on his own.
Gavin’s eyes grew wide. “Guess whose suit you’ll wear?”
Right away Peter thought of Dusty Robinson, the man who walked on the moon with his dad and later flew on Skylab. His dad always swore Dusty was over six feet tall, the height limit by NASA back then. Dusty later admitted he tried to avoid taking a physical in the morning because he seemed to shrink throughout the day, and he learned how to slouch unnoticeably. Peter smiled. “There is only one Skylab astronaut’s suit I could possibly fit in—Dusty Robinson.”
Gavin looked impressed. “Damn, you’re right. The cosmonaut flying up with you will wear the new Sokol LM spacesuit, which will allow him to do the transfer to the space station.”
“How will I move between spacecrafts?”
“A SAFER. You will jury-rig the jetpack to the Skylab suit.”
A sly smirk emerged on Peter’s face as he remembered slamming into the International Space Station wearing the propulsive backpack system. “Good; I’m an expert on flying that thing now.”
Gavin shot a puzzled look.
Peter gave a minor nod with a wink before he turned to gaze out the window. This operation was sounding like a blast, and he was convinced he could pull it off. But he hated leaving Anya so soon after getting back from the moon. How would she handle it? He hoped she would understand this was his job, a part of his life.
Gavin interrupted his train of thought. “Russia does not want this to go public. It could be a public relations nightmare and hurt their future tourist business.”
Peter turned with a look of coolness, understanding this was a top-secret mission. “Got it.”
Gavin leaned back and put his hands behind his head. “So what do you think? Are you game?”
“Absolutely. I’m your man. I’ll bring those men back safely. Besides, I never paid my bill for my last stay at the space station.”
Gavin smiled as he grabbed a file and tossed it across the desk. “Here are the specifics. You need to leave immediately. There’s a helicopter outside waiting to take you to Andrews Air Force Base.” Gavin stood and extended his hand. “It’s great to have you back, Peter.”
Peter quickly stood and grabbed Gavin’s hand. “Good to be back, Boss.”
PETER HUSTLED ACROSS the rooftop helipad as he powered through the rushing air being generated by the mighty rotors of the waiting black helicopter. When he walked under the spinning blades, he lowered his head, a common reflex.
Peter approached the helicopter’s entrance. An agent was waiting by the doorway. He yelled out over the thundering noise surrounding them. “Welcome aboard, Mr. Novak.”
Peter gave a casual wave as he hollered back, “Thank you.” He quickly jumped in before shifting over to the back seat bench. He immediately put on the radio headset lying on the seat. Other than the pilot at the controls, he was the only passenger. The agent outside gave a brief wave before shutting the door tight, instantly cutting off the loud noise.
The pilot looked back as he spoke into his mic. “Hello, sir; I’m Darren. Welcome aboard.”
Peter adjusted the volume on his headset. “Thank you. By the way, you don’t have to call me sir.”
“Are you ready for takeoff, Mr. Novak?”
“Darren, just call me Peter. I’m all set.”
“Yes, sir.”
Peter chuckled at the young agent. The craft started to lift as he looked outside. He always enjoyed the sensation of flying in a helicopter. After they were a safe distance up, the helicopter rolled on its side, pulling him toward the window as they went into a steep 90-degree turn.
Peter continued to stare as he started to review the mission in his head. He couldn’t believe he was already going back into space after being back only a little over a week. He was looking forward to launching in a Russian rocket for the first time, as well as getting back into a Soyuz spacecraft. He instantly thought of Viktor, sure he would reminisce about his old friend through the mission. He was looking forward to visiting those past memories.
This was the first mission he’d agreed to take on while in love. Anya was now a part of his life, and he had a responsibility to her. He needed to inform her he was leaving and would definitely return home safely. “Can you patch a call through for me?”
“Yes, sir.”
Peter rattled off Anya’s cell number. He rubbed his hands together as he waited. Soon the ringing reverberated in his headset.
After a few rings, her soft voice answered. “Hello?”
Peter figured she was probably wondering who was calling after seeing an unknown number. “Hey, Baby, it’s me.”
Her voice perked up. “Where are you?”
“I’m in a helicopter.”
“Are you coming home?”
There was a short pause. “I wish I was. I’m leaving the country on a short mission.”
Sadness outlined her voice. “Oh? When will you return?”
Peter spoke with assurance. “Not sure. Maybe in a week or so, but there’s nothing to worry about.”
“Where are you off to?”
Peter couldn’t tell her, and even if he wanted to, he was on an open mic. Though no firm plans had been made between them on what they would do regarding their jobs and living situation, Anya had mentioned she needed to get back to Russia because of her work. He figured if she went back and met with Dmitri, he would probably tell her what was going on, possibly allowing her into the control room. “I can’t tell you, but go ahead and travel back to Russia and take care of what you need to. I also suggest touching base with Dmitri.”
“Why Dmitri?”
Peter hoped to give her a clue. “Like when I went to the moon, he might be able to give you some insight.”
Her voice sounded apprehensive. “Oh, okay.”
“I’ve got to go.”
She cooed. “Take care of yourself. I don’t ever again want to think I’ve lost you.”
Peter grabbed the pendant around his neck. “Don’t worry; everything will be fine. I don’t want to be without you, either.”
“Promise?”
Peter rubbed the pendant. “Promise.”
“I love you.”
“Love you too, Babe.”
6
BAIKONUR COSMODROME
The officer’s footsteps clicked rhythmically down the concrete corridor inside the crusty old building, stationed within the compounds of Russia’s famous launch facility. Peter followed closely behind as he wiped the sweat off his brow. Due to the lack of air conditioning, he figured he was walking in one of the complex’s original sixty-year-old buildings. Though a light late morning breeze flowed through the many opened widows, it was of little help cooling him off. The passageway felt as hot as the ninety-degree-plus temperature outside.